The StrongCore tee, Limitless shirt and baseball cap combo from Western Rise is a perfect marriage of performance and style!

Limitless Merino is an everyday dress shirt that looks like an oxford knit button down shirt but feels like wearing a polo shirt. Limitless Merino has some unique features that separates it from other button down shirts. For one, it is made of 10 separate pieces of fabric and without a standard box pleat; hence there is no rectangular fold of fabric running along the middle of the back. 

 

Instead, the Limitless Merino shirt features two long vertical seams running perpendicularly across the yoke of the shirt. The vertical seams have been flattened using a flatlock type stitch, which keeps the edges of the fabric contained in the stitching to prevent rubbing against the skin.


The bottom end of the Limitless Merino shirt has a straight cut with a double fold hem all the way around to prevent fraying. Like most button down shirts, the Limitless Merino shirt sleeves integrate cuffs and plackets cut across the neck of the sleeves to help roll off the sleeves easily. The rim of the front pocket has hemming done to it too.


The cuffs have a 45-degree angled cut at the corners, as well as a thick double layer fabric reinforcement. Both the cuffs and the plackets have a single button closure. The front placket - running vertically across the front of the shirt - has been folded back over the front and stitched to create a visible strip of raised fabric. 

 

There are a total of 7 buttons lining the front placket and have been reinforced with strong stitching. Front plackets are pretty standard with most dress shirts but, you can also get different placket variants such as the popover placket typically found on polo shirts. The collar of the Limitless shirt has the same thickly construction as the cuffs and stays put without a collar stay.


The mix blend of wool poly fabrics (53% merino wool and 47% polyester) with basket weave and heavy weight yarn (175 GSM) works really well, making the Limitless Merino shirt lighter in texture, stretchy and wear resistant. Another added plus with being wool, it's its natural odor resistance, which is the reason why wool is so popular among hikers/backpackers. Despite not being 100% wool, the Limitless Merino shirt does a good job of naturally reducing smells and keeping the shirt fresh without using a chemical treatment such as 'polygeine', which has been used to treat the X Cotton Everyday t-shirt.


Unless the shirt gets dirty by other means (e.g. coffee spillage), you won't be needing to wash the shirt for weeks. The shirt feels really soft on the body too, without any rubbing. Another unique feature found on the Limitless Merino shirt is the locker loop, which is located internally (above the tagless label) and made of a thin red cord. Locker loops on button down shirts are typically made of fabric and located externally below the yoke of the shirt. The Limitless Merino shirt weighs 336 grams.


A nice feature about the StrongCore Merino Tee is the side split hem - similar to polo shirts. The side split hem is 10cm long and has been reinforced with a thin strip of red fabric across it. Most t-shirts don't have the horizontal side cut on the sides, which is actually very useful for getting an even fit around the waist.


The StrongCore Tee has a tennis tail extension too, which means the back length of the t-shirt is longer than the front length. In this case, the backside is 2.5cm longer than the front. A lot of polo shirts - typically sports polos - have a longer tennis tail which may look a little odd but practical helping to keep the t-shirt tucked in when bending over. Shirts with tails go as far back as the Middle Ages when long tails of shirts serve the function of underpants for men before drawers became a thing.


The StrongCore Tee is made of heavy core spin yarn (170 GSM), using a blend of wool nylon (89% merino wool and 11% nylon). The wool ratio is substantially higher on the StrongCore Merino, which increases odor resistance and breathability too, making it ideal for workouts in the gym or running outdoors. The nylon mixture is beneficial too for helping the wool maintain its shape, while softening the texture. Nylon also allows the StrongCore Merino Tee to be more resistant against shrinking and wrinkling, which is a plus.


There are two labels on the StrongCore tee - one being tagless located at the top along the neck line - and the second one is a scratchy type label tag located towards the bottom ampit side seam. The seams on the StrongCore tee have been flattened too using a flatlock stitch and are soft and do not scratch. The seams on the sleeves and crew neckline have been double stitched, which makes the seam stronger and more resistant against frying. The StrongCore weighs 160 grams at the scales.


For colder days when more layers are needed, the combination of the StrongCore Merino Tee worn under the Limitless Merino shirt works really well. both shirts have a classic and timeless design, which looks good for work or even going out on a date. Both the StrongCore Merino Tee and Limitless Merino are a match made in heaven!


The Versa Hat baseball cap has a stealthy black color-scheme with subtle Western Rise embroidery on the backside. The branding has been sewn in with thread so, it will be longer lasting and more durable than printed and woven branding. The Versa Hat is made of 6 different panels sewn together in the center of the crown of the cap without a top "squatchee" button.


A lot of baseball caps have a top button, although it has no practical function and can get in the way when wearing headphones or a bicycle helmet. Buttons on baseball caps are made with metal rivets too, which can be painful when bumping your head.


The Versa Hat weighs 67 grams and, it's made with a blend of synthetic materials (92% polyester and 8% spandex). The brim (bill) of the Versa Hat isn't made of cardboard or plastic. Instead, it is made of EVA foam, which is flexible and can be crushed without deforming its shape. This makes the Versa Hat more versatile than a typical baseball cap, although the brim is not quite as bendable as a regular hat. You can't quite get the same curved bill but the Versa Hat brim will hold a shape after it is adjusted a few times.


The Versa Hat doesn't have any perforated eyelets on top but the crown is breathable and moisture wicking so, it keeps the head cool. The Versa Hat has a sandwich bill cap with a different (subtle) color finish on the underbill side. The bill circumference is 18cm across with a 7cm radius from the centre, making the bill length 7cm long, which is typical for a baseball cap. The crown depth of the Versa Hat is 12cm approximately and has been coated with DWR to make it waterproof. The sweatband is wide and made of stretchy elastic material.


As far as the hat closure, the Versa Hat doesn't use a traditional plastic snap or fabric belt buckle. Instead, it uses a plastic flat buckle attached to a webbing strap, which is strong and adjustable. The flat buckle closure is very thin so, it doesn't poke against the head. The only downside of the flat buckle is that it is not as easy to adjust on the fly like a plastic snap and belt buckle closure. You have to remove the hat off your head and adjust it that way The flat buckle strap can be adjusted down to 4cm up to 13cm wide to suit various head sizes. Being a flat buckle, it doesn't feel as rugged or as secure as a tooth buckle.


As far as care and maintenance, there is no special care needed to maintain the shirts and the hat, although the Versa Hat cannot be put through a wash and, it is liable to catching lint like a regular cap. The Limitless and StrongCore shirts can be put through a machine wash (warm water) and tumble dry. Being merino wool, you can't wash the shirts in hot water or tumble dry at high temperature as this is likely to shrink the shirts. Unless you urgently need to wear the shirts on the day, line drying is the best way of drying the shirt. It prevents static cling too, as well as wrinkles. And, the shirts will also last longer when line drying.


The combination of merino and polyester fabric, makes line drying the shirts very quickly. It takes about 2 hours in a warm environment (20C/68F) or 30 minutes out in the sun. Care instructions have been printed on the label tag inside the shirts, along with two spare buttons sewn onto the label tag of the Limitless Merino shirt. 

 

There is a tagless label also on the top of the neck of the shirts, which have been printed directly onto the shirts via a heat transfer label. Being a tagless label, it doesn't scratch or itch and will last longer too, thanks to the print being embedded into the sublayer of the fabric. The label tag on the Versa Hat is not tagless but, it isn't scratchy either so, you don't notice it being there.You can buy the Limitless Merino shirt, StrongCore Merino tee and Versa Hat from Western Rise website. Check out the review of the AirLoft Vest and Session Sun Hoodie.